Age is Just a Numbuh
by lightning bird
Summary: Being decommissioned from the KND is one thing - staying that way is something entirely different.
1. Fine Thanks

**Age is Just a Numbuh**

by lightning-bird

A/N: This came about because I didn't want to face the idea of Sector V being decommissioned once the Fusion Invasion was stopped. Since they're loyal operatives I can see them submitting to decommissioning, but I can also see their non-KND friends taking up the torch on their behalf.

This was supposed to be a one-shot. I failed.

All the characters belong to Cartoon Network and their respective creators except for Chip Morton, who belongs to Irwin Allen and 20th Century Fox.

**OoOoOoOoOoOoO**

**Part One: Fine Thanks**

_". . . with deepest regret, I must order the Sector V command crew to report to headquarters for decommissioning on Saturday, August 31st."_ There was a pause, and then Fifty-Two quietly added,_ "I'm sorry, Nigel."_

Silence followed as the five teens who were Kids through and through tried to absorb this grim news. Disbelief was written across their faces and they stared at the screen in shock. Decommissioned? After years of fighting a war, a real war where people had been killed and wounded and cities had been leveled and the Great Lakes poisoned and towns had been reduced to sludge? After countless missions and endless hardship? After watching friends die and facing alien invaders against hopeless odds? Decommissioned? _This_ was their reward for helping to win the Fusion War? Their memories of serving in the Kids Next Door – loyal, dedicated, unwavering service - would be wiped clean and they'd be cast into the realm of teenagers? Everything they had done, the people they had known, the adventures they'd shared – would this all be taken from them?

"On behalf of Sector V, I must protest!" Nigel Uno exclaimed, finding his voice. He stepped forward, his hands balled into fists. "Number Fifty-Two, this is wrong and you know it!"

The young boy facing them on the screen dropped his gaze, unable to look them in the eye as he delivered his devastating message. _"Number One, I understand that you're upset. I don't blame you. I would be, too, and I'm sure I will be when my turn comes. But you knew the rules when you signed up, and it's because of the Fusion invasion that the KND extended membership for all of you. You're sixteen. You're not Kids any more."_

"Numbuh Five begs to differ," Abby challenged with savage intensity. She leaned in toward the screen, her expression dangerous enough to make Fifty-Two pull away from the comm unit even though he was a sector away. "Age is just a numbuh."

"What she said," Wally growled, though clearly he had no idea of what he was agreeing to. He managed to sum up their reaction quite neatly, though, as he snapped, "We gave everything. What, now you're just gonna _take_ everything?"

Number Fifty-Two sighed._ "I'm sorry,"_ he repeated, plainly meaning it. _"But these are the rules, and you all joined the KND knowing this would happen some day, and you all agreed to submit to decommissioning when your time came. You guys got four more years than anyone else. Be glad."_

Plainly anxious to get away, he ended the transmission. Sector V's command team sat together in their tree house and stared at the dark screen. For the longest time no one spoke or moved, and then Wally folded his arms with a loud huff.

"Right, well, this stinks!"

Number Three seemed to wilt, gazing with anxious eyes at her friends. "What are we going to do? I don't want to forget."

Nigel placed his hand on her arm. "No matter what, we'll all still be friends, Kuki."

"You sound like somebody that just gave up, Nigel," Number Five snapped.

"Yeah!" Number Two exclaimed, as shocked at Number One's conduct as at the notion that they were to be decommissioned from the organization they had served well above and beyond the call of duty. He paced the floor, waving his hands in frustration. "This is fine thanks!"

The sector leader sighed. "I hate to say it, especially to all of you, but Fifty-Two is right. This is what we agreed to, what we promised to submit to. If they make an exception for us, they have to make it for everyone."

Abby shook her head, not buying it, and she was hurt beyond words that Number One was right. "But they already made an exception for us."

**OoOoOoOoOoOoO**

"This bites, Dex."

Dexter sat up straight and then cautiously leaned over a bit to look at the sample of Fusion Matter he'd just placed in the viewscope of the microscope he was using. He stared at it suspiciously, waiting for it to do something, but it was just as inert as it had been when Billy had collected it for him yesterday. No teeth. No biting. Not even any gnashing or gnawing. Nothing at all. Thanks to Professor Utonium's counter-virus, all Fusion Matter on the planet was, for all intents and purposes, dead. Realizing his best friend must mean something else entirely, the Boy Genius cautiously asked, "What bites, Ben?"

"You didn't hear?" Ben's feet slid off Dexter's equipment-strewn work bench and he sat up straight to give vent to his anger. And he was angry, Dexter realized. It was a rare state for Ben Tennyson and usually reserved for things he felt were unjust or plain wrong. "Where have you been, kiddo?"

"Where am I ever, Mr. Tennyson?"

He was here, in his lab, working to defeat Fuse. Now that the job was done, he might actually start living in the real world - provided he could figure out how to go about that order.

"You gotta get out more," was the older boy's sage advice.

Dexter smiled faintly. "Maybe now I can."

Ben snorted in disbelief. "This I gotta see."

"You will," promised the redhead. "So what bites? We defeated Fuse. The monsters and mechs are gone and all we have to deal with now are EVOs and aliens. Our Fusion copies are reduced to nasty, smelly slag. The Infected Zones are all recovering. There are no more sea monsters in the Great Lakes. The Plumbers have contracted with the Highbreed to use their dimensional gate technology to remove most of Planet Fusion's remains and restore a moon in orbit around this planet. Soon, we'll have tides again. Mandark finally asked DeeDee out. My lease with Mandy ends next month and I'll have earned a whole dollar. Mr. Smoothy is re-opening next Friday and I'm buying. I swear, I'll have money on me. What could possibly be wrong in the world?"

Despite his ire, Ben smiled to hear his best friend list the many successes made by Earth's Combined Forces. It was only a small fragment of what they had achieved, but even then his news was pretty depressing stuff. Leaning his elbows on his knees, he looked Dexter in the eye and quietly said,

"The KND is decommissioning Sector V's whole command team."

Dexter frowned. He was ignorant of the finer points of decommissioning, though he could tell by the older teen's body language and tone that this was not good. "What does that mean, exactly?"

"It means that our friends have to walk into the KND headquarters on Saturday and have their memories wiped clean of everything they've done for the Kids Next Door all the way back to the day they joined."

He felt his jaw drop in horror. "Everything?" he echoed, a chill running through him. Few things frightened him more than the thought of losing anything he had learned. "Ben, they fought a war! They've been at it for years, just as we have! They would take that away from them? Why?"

"By KND rules, they're too old."

"So Nigel . . . he won't remember being my friend? And Wally – he'll forget everything he did for my dad?"

Ben nodded, the enormity of what his friends stood to lose robbing him of speech.

Not Dexter. Fury consumed him as he stood up to his full and very unimpressive height. He pointed imperiously, his heavily accented voice rising up in indignation. "That is sickening! Unacceptable! Insufferable! How dare the KND rob their memories when they should be applauding them as the heroes they are! We owe them better than that. They saved you! They saved me! _They saved my father."_ He shook his head, incredulous. "Why would they do this?"

"Maybe . . . maybe because they're living proof that teens and adults aren't the enemy."

"It's wrong."

Happy to get such a reaction, the Wielder of the Omnitrix nodded his support for whatever plan of action Dexter proposed no matter how far-fetched or stupid it might be. Something had to be done – but what? "I'm right there with ya on the whole pissed off thing, Dex, but there's not a lot anyone can do."

Blue eyes narrowed sharply behind tinted glasses as the smartest, richest boy in the world demanded, "Says who?"

**OoOoOoOoOoOoO**

"Idiots!"

"Told you you were wasting your breath, Einstein," droned Mandy, not looking up from her paperwork.

Dexter's spine stiffened and he clenched his hands into fists, his anger compounding mathematically as he glared at the now silent comm unit in Mandy's office. He had just had a long and fruitless argument with a lisping KND paper-pusher who probably had never seen a moment of combat and who rambled on about regulations and oaths. Dexter promised himself he was going to have his super computer Computress crash the entire KND network if they dared go forward and decommission his friends.

"I had the exact same argument with the exact same idiots and got the exact same answers," Mandy went on, managing to read and talk at the same time. "I don't like it any more than you do, but the KND are an independent organization and Sector V has to follow their rules."

The young girl that had guided them successfully (and ruthlessly) through the entire Fusion Invasion looked up from her endless work. She glanced at Ben where he sat on the edge of her desk, then at Dexter where he stood just seconds away from bursting into flames.

"I'm all for breaking rules when it suits my purpose," she admitted. "But you're not going to get results this way."

Dexter stiffened even further, turning a haughty glare at her. He said nothing, waiting for her to continue. In the past Mandy had proven she was better at understanding people than Dexter could ever hope to be. Mandy ignored the attitude and addressed the genius.

"You're barking up the wrong tree, Dexter. It's not the KND that need to change their attitudes, it's Sector V."

"They don't want this to happen any more than we do, Mandy!" Ben answered.

She shrugged, going back to work. "Question is, do they not want it enough to do something about it? Now get out of my office while it's still mine."

**OoOoOoOoOoOoO**

Nigel wrapped his hands around the cup of steaming cocoa, remembering fondly how he and Dexter had shared cocoa and conversation that day four years ago when he'd finally worked up the nerve to address the young scientist. It seemed odd that come tomorrow morning, the memory would be gone. Once he was through with being decommissioned, only Dexter would be able to recall the conversation . . . and this one as well. He could count on one hand the times he'd spent with Dexter, yet this boy's presence had been felt by every person fighting the Fusions. He was such a part of the war that Nigel knew come tomorrow, he would not know him any more. Dexter's constant aura was as great a loss as the memory of his adventures with his team. It was a very . . . sad feeling, and he tried to accept the inevitable as he looked at the teen sitting opposite him.

"I appreciate your stance, Dexter. As horrible as it sounds to you – as horrible as it _is_ – we all agreed to abide by this rule when we joined the Kids Next Door. We're fortunate to have had the extra time that we were given."

"The KND are fortunate you agreed to stay on," countered Dexter, pouring more cocoa without bothering to find out if Nigel wanted some.

"It was easy to agree to the KND terms when I was little. Thirteen seemed forever away. I don't think I ever really believed this day would come."

"It still hasn't. Don't they value the bonds and contacts you've formed? The Plumbers, Providence - do they actually think DexLabs will continue supporting them if they do this?"

"I would hope you do," the leader of Sector V said, trying to be reasonable. "Dexter, the war is over. It's done. We won. Now our part is finished and it's time to get on with living."

"Living?" scoffed the redhead. "When you don't remember everything you've done to make living possible? We win, but Sector V loses. What about my father? Is he just supposed to abandon his friendship with Number Four? What about me? Ben? Those Ed people? Do you expect us to simply forget you as you'll forget us?"

"We can still be friends."

"Can we? You won't know me or Ben or Mandy any more than we'll know you. You won't be the Nigel Uno we know and value. You won't believe our stories. You won't know yourself. Can you honestly say that's what you want?"

He closed his eyes so he did not have to look at the fierce intensity that was Dexter. The depth of what he and his fellows had to lose was almost overwhelming. He drew a deep breath, trying to collect himself, promising himself he would not break down in front of the boy that had financed almost the entirety of this war. He owed Dexter that much, at least. It was a long few moments before he trusted himself enough to answer.

"I would be lying if I said yes."

"Can you speak for your team?" was the instantaneous question.

Number One stared over his sunglasses, a wild, desperate, crazy hope rising in his chest as he caught the determined gleam in Dexter's eyes. He leaned far forward, his voice dropping to a tight whisper. "What do you have in mind?"

"Come with me. I'll show you."

**OoOoOoOoOoOoO**

They were seated together outside the Burger Shack by the Downtown Mall, nursing watery sodas and trying very hard not to be miserable as they talked about capturing Albedo at this very eatery. They knew they would be up all night, clinging to the last moments that defined them as some of the greatest fighters earth had ever known. Other KND - so young, they seemed! - and ECF soldiers partied on around them, ecstatic that the war was over.

"Yay for us," muttered Wally crossly. "Why do I feel like we lost?"

Hoagie leaned heavily on his hand. "I feel used."

"Numbah Five knows whatcha mean," Abby added, looking with disapproval into her almost-empty cup.

Kuki dug for any sort of comfort. "At least we'll all still be friends."

"I think we'll really need friends after this," grumbled Number Two, slumping further down. "I -"

They all jumped as Nigel's voice, as crisp and no-nonsense as ever, came over their communicators._ "Sector V command team, this is Number One. Respond."_

"Do not tell Numbah Five we are going on a mission _now_," groused Abby.

Number Three bit her lip, then quietly said, "I'd take a mission."

"And drag it out forever," added Wally.

"This is Number Two. Go ahead, Number One," Hoagie replied, not even bothering to infuse any enthusiasm into his voice.

_"Report to DexLabs Security immediately,"_ ordered Nigel. _"Sgt. Morton will meet you."_

Resisting the urge to sigh, hoping this wasn't some last-ditch party or attempt to cheer them up, Hoagie stood. "Come on, guys. At least we'll get to say goodby to Mr. Morton while we still know he was one of us."

Abby glanced at her watch. "The Sarge ain't usually on duty this late."

"Maybe Dexter tried to go outside," the second in command replied. He would miss clashing with Dexter's security chief and that distinct, angry tone of voice he used when he shouted _"Gilligan!"_ every time Hoagie tried to dismantle something that was listed as DexTech.

"Bet he wasn't much happier about decommissioning than us," observed Number Four.

It wasn't very far to DexLabs, and they walked the distance in silence. DexLabs Headquarters loomed large and gleaming before them. The quad before the building was jammed with children celebrating their victory - dancing, cheering, and doing everything in their power to annoy Mandark over in his corporate headquarters across the street. They had good reason to be happy, and Sector V looked at them with envy.

"Man, that should be us," complained Number Five, unable to contain her frustration.

They dodged a KND news crew that chased them all the way to the entrance of the building. The news team slid to a halt when they saw Sgt. Chip Morton looming tall and blond and heavily armed and glaring at them from just inside the foyer. They weren't troubled by the hard look - Morton was an equal opportunity glarer and gave the narrow-eyed stare to anyone that got too close to the building. His presence did stop them cold, though, because their equipment wasn't allowed in the building. If they tried to get in, Morton would just chuck the Kids out and make their parents come get the news cameras. Not even an interview with Sector V was worth that indignity.

For a long moment Morton looked at their downcast expressions, not wondering at the uncharacteristic silence from the valiant team. Almost thirty years ago, he had joined the KND in Sector T, serving exceptionally well and with great loyalty. Yet Morton remembered nothing of the years spent battling adult tyranny. The adventures, the fun, the camaraderie, the drama had all been wiped clean during decommissioning. He had only found out about his service through some ill-timed comments made by some starstruck KND recruits. At least he finally understood why so many Kids looked at him with such awe and asked him to give them a noogie and why he had a fan club - KND Operative 126's service was, Morton had discovered, the stuff of legend even all these years later.

"I heard," he said without preamble, as direct as ever.

His sympathy just seemed to drive their misery home. Here was someone who had followed KND protocol to the letter and walked into headquarters a hero, his head held high, and walked out a teenager and sworn enemy of the Kids Next Door. The example Morton had set made their own reluctance to go through with this all the more painful.

"I also don't agree with your commanders."

They looked up sharply, all of them surprised. Morton had been a career Navy officer and reservist at NIMR and a known stickler for following orders. He frowned at their reaction.

"Decommissioning you is pointless and a gross disservice. The world knows about the KND now. There's no going back."

"Like trying to sweep up the tide," muttered Wally, scuffing his feet on the floor.

"We get the reasoning behind it, but . . ." Hoagie threw his hands up, unable to finish.

"Understanding something doesn't make it right," said Morton, sounding exactly like Mr. Green for a moment.

"Hey, Sarge," Number Five said, giving him an assessing look and for the first time addressing him as a peer, a fellow Kid. "If you had a choice, would you have gone through with it? Would you have been decommissioned?"

"Of course not," he said immediately. "Who would want to forget? I went to the moon when I was eleven years old. _The moon!_ I walked across the surface of another planet and I wasn't allowed to keep that." His face was filled with bitterness about something he could not recall, and he shook his head in disgust. "You guys may be teenagers, but you're still Kids and you'll be Kids when you're my age."

"Thanks, Sarge," Abby said softly, meaning it. With a glance at her friends and a sigh she got down to business. "Any idea where Numbah One is?"

"Yes. I'm to escort you to him." He looked over at Number Two. "You're going to love this, Gilligan, but if you get out of my sight you're spending your last night as a KND in the brig. Come on."

A slow, hopeful grin spread across Hoagie's face. "Where are we going, Mr. Morton?"

The blond gestured toward the elevator and gave them a rare smile. "Dexter's laboratory."


	2. Invitation

**Part Two: Invitation**

"Abigail Lincoln! Mail call for Miss Abigail Lincoln!"

Bounding up from her desk, Abby crossed her room in two strides and opened the door to see her father waving an envelope playfully. He eyed her askance, holding the envelope out of reach over his head.

"Would you happen to know the location of a certain Miss Abigail Lincoln?" he teased.

She struck a pose and feigned thoughtful consideration. "Would that be a tall, attractive, highly intelligent young lady with a devilishly handsome doctor for a father?"

"That'd be the one," he instantly allowed, handing over the envelope with a grin. "It's a perfect day. You going out?"

"Yeah, just meeting up with Hoagie and Nigel. We're just gonna hang out at Hoagie's."

"You have fun," he called fondly as she headed for the stairs.

Walking along the sidewalk on her way to Hoagie's house, Abby examined the envelope. She rarely got mail, and she was intrigued by the high quality of the paper and the embossed figure-8 logo on the back of it. The design seemed vaguely familiar - she knew she had seen it before. It was addressed, but there was no stamp. Had it been hand-delivered? Why? Giving in to her curiosity, she carefully opened the envelope. Pulling out the card within, she walked and read.

_Dear Miss Lincoln,_

_You are cordially invited to the premier screening _

_of the new action-adventure motion picture _

_Code Name: Kids Next Door - Fusion Invasion _

_to be held at DexLabs Corporate Headquarters in Downtown _

_at 2:00 PM on Saturday, September 7th. _

_Refreshments, pizza, and ice cream to follow._

"Ice cream?" she wondered aloud. "I'm there."

Now she recognized the logo. DexLabs. They made the coolest hover boards and she was hoping and praying for one for Christmas. She had already dropped some major hints, but it was never too early to get to work on her parents. She considered. Today was the seventh, and she had enough money for bus fare to Downtown . . .

"Hmm." It seemed odd to premier a movie at a corporate headquarters, but if she remembered aright from all the gushing Hoagie did, that Dexter kid that owned DexLabs was afraid of going outside. Maybe the film was coming to him. Weird title for a movie. Why invite her? Could they have gotten her name through her school? Maybe Hoagie would have a clue. She'd ask.

When she got to the Gilligan house, it was in an uproar of sorts. Hoagie was in in full-bore science nerd fanboy mode and Nigel, sitting on a lawn chair in the driveway, was getting quite a show as his best friend had a DexLabs-inspired meltdown.

"DexLabs! DexLabs! Nigel, we have to go! We can't miss this! Abby!" he called, catching sight of her as she ambled up the driveway. He waved a card at her. "Tell me you got invited too!"

"Got mine right here," she said, displaying her invitation. Nigel silently held up and identical envelope for her to see.

"Good! We can't miss this! It's too important!"

"It's a movie premier. Calm yourself, Hogarth."

"No!" He gestured wildly. "There's more to it. Look!"

He handed her an envelope. For a moment she thought it was an invitation just like hers - the card and the envelope were the same. Opening it, she saw a handwritten note dated four years previously.

_Ben,  
If you're not busy later, please join me for lunch. I have a favor to ask of you. I'll meet you at noon in the main atrium.  
Prof. P.L. Utonium_

"Who's Ben?" she wondered, looking up with a frown. "And who's Professor Utonium?"

"Look at the name on the envelope, Abby," Nigel said.

She turned it over and let her shock come through as she slowly read, "Ben . . . Tennyson? _The_ Ben Tennyson? Ben10 Ben Tennyson? Alien dude hero guy?" She looked between her two friends. "Hoagie, why . . . _how_ do you have a note written to Ben10 on DexLabs card stock?"

_"I don't know,"_ was the tense reply. "It was in the box of stuff I keep hidden so Tommy won't get his paws on it. Abby, I have a handwritten note from _Professor Patrick Lawrence Utonium!"_

"Who is?" she prompted.

"The guy that made the Powerpuff Girls! He's the president of DexCorp International. How can I not remember getting hold of this note with his signature?" Hoagie demanded of them both.

Nigel gave her a knowing look over the brim of his sunglasses. It was too far-fetched to think Hoagie would forget such an acquisition and they all knew it. "Something is going on here."

She nodded, understanding. "Something strange."

"Oi!"

They all turned at the familiar shout as Wally and Kuki came down the sidewalk toward them. They were holding hands, and in their free hands were familiar envelopes. The Australian held his up expectantly.

"Aye, you all up for free pizza?"

Abby looked at her own invitation, intrigued and suspicious. "I hope I'm dressed for a movie premier."

**OoOoOoOoOoOoO**

"Think they'll come, Dex?"

The young scientist gave off his compulsive tinkering on the device he'd already fine-tuned ten times today and stepped away. He joined Ben where the older teen stood surrounded by holographic screens projected in the air by Computress. They all showed the main entrance of DexLabs from a variety of angles. People and talking animals and various sundry creatures milled about in the bright sunshine of late summer. Though the war was over, there was still a tremendous amount of work to get done. Reconstruction and recovery and clean up still lay before them, daunting tasks, but welcome.

"They'll come," Dexter said, trying to sound more confident than he felt.

Not fooled for an instant, Ben glanced down at him. "What if they don't?"

He shrugged. "I'll send Sgt. Morton to kidnap them. It's for their own good."

Ben chuckled, assured. "Think it'll work?"

"Of course," was the defensive - and thoroughly predictable - reply. "It's actually quite simple to block a person's memory. It's a cascading set of triggers that redirect thought patterns away from whatever it is you want to hide."

"Pff. Kindergarten stuff," was the sarcastic comment.

Dexter elbowed him in reply. "The KND have perfected the process. It can be reversed. There are several occasions when decommissioned operatives have been re-commissioned and they retain full memory of their service until such time as they're decommissioned again." He clasped his hands behind his back, still watching the screens. "Within the past ten years or so, however, the KND have occasionally gone a step further and actually erased the memories of certain operatives. Usually they reserve such extremes for particularly troublesome individuals."

"You think they listed Sector V as particularly troublesome?" he asked, imitating Dexter's thick accent as he quoted him.

"It's distinctly possible. Operatives aren't usually resistant to decommissioning, but then the KND has never taken part in a world war or had teenagers for a command team." He paused, collecting himself. "In the aftermath of my Fusion kidnapping me and . . . and probing my mind, Dad and I did a lot of research in the recording and preservation of memories."

"That can't have been easy. How'd you figure that out?"

Dexter shrugged. "Figuring out the mechanical aspect wasn't hard at all."

Knowing better, the brunet asked, "So what was the hard part?"

He made a wry face and admitted, "Thinking about it at all. Since the Fusion was a copy of me, it wasn't difficult for me to apply the same thought process he did to create the probe in the first place."

"Clever."

"More like inevitable. If you can read something, you can record it, memories included, and if you remove something, it can be replaced if you don't wait too long."

"You've tried it?" squawked Ben.

Dexter nodded. "Numerous times."

He stared, floored. "On who?"

"Billy."

He stared harder. "How can you tell if it worked?"

"Oh, I just gave him some of my memories for a week. It was the most useful he's ever been in the lab."

"Did he even know what he was getting himself into?"

"When has that knowledge ever influenced his cognitive or decision-making processes?"

"Good point. But . . . it fried your brain. Granted Billy hasn't got much to lose . . ."

Instinctively he raised a purple-gloved hand to his temple, to the deep scars he would bear all his life. "It only hurt me because the Ur-Dexter enjoyed torturing people. The process is relatively painless."

"So you've got Sector V on floppy disk?" he asked, trying to restore his friend's good mood.

"Do you even know what a floppy disk is, Mr. Tennyson? In essence you're right, though. They're using up a shocking amount of memory, but this is just a wake-up call for me to expand Computress' capacity." He shrugged and looked smug and happy all at once.

"There's a bright side to everything."

"Plus, if the KND try to pull anything and repeat the decommissioning, I can just restore their memories again."

"Sneaky. Gotta wonder why they even bothered. Seems a pretty cheap shot to me."

"I think it's a knee-jerk reaction. Their long-held beliefs are being threatened and challenged. Change is difficult, and Sector V stands as testimony to how erroneous and outdated the attitude about teens and adults really is. The KND command is simply circling the wagons against an enemy that's not there."

"Hey!" He smacked Dexter on the arm and pointed. "Look!"

Five familiar figures stood at the far end of the square. Computress zoomed the cameras in to show Nigel, Hoagie, Kuki, Wally, and Abby clustered together and looking about with great interest. Dexter and Ben exchanged a quick grin, and then Dexter held his hand up.

"Comm cube! Sgt. Morton!"

A glowing cube appeared over his hand projecting an image of his security chief.

_"We've got them on camera, sir,"_ said Morton. Despite his stoic demeanor, it was clear the sergeant was immensely pleased. _"I'll do the meet and greet."_

"We'll join you in ten minutes."

They were silent for about thirty seconds, watching the screens. Ben fidgeted and rocked back on his heels.

"Feels like ten minutes to me."

"Yeah, let's go."

They almost ran to the elevator.

**OoOoOoOoOoOoO**

"Is it me, or is everyone staring?" wondered Hoagie.

"It's not you," confirmed Abby. She looked around the entrance to the building with admiration. "Man, this place is nice."

"I hope we get decent seats," Wally muttered, still laboring under the belief that they were here for a movie.

"I like the waterfall," announced Kuki, heading toward the indoor fountain for a better look.

Nigel stepped away from the group following Kuki, drawn to an abstract sculpture to the side of the fountain. It looked as if it was bursting straight out of the marble tiles of the floor. Upon closer inspection he saw the sculpture was made entirely of gears and machine parts from a weapon of sorts that looked as if they had been blown to bits from the inside before being welded together. At the base was a small plaque reading _Kurze Kanone 001. _He stared, letting his gaze wander through the plant-filled entrance. All was light and airy and chrome and glass. This place felt . . . right. Welcoming. He belonged here, but why? He touched the sculpture, wondering aloud,

"Why does this seem familiar?"

"Because you've seen it before."

Somehow the words didn't surprise him, though the speaker did. He turned and faced a tall man in dark gray body armor. Blond hair peeked out beneath his baseball cap, and he had a stiff, no-nonsense air about him. Instantly Nigel knew this was not someone to cross, and he hastily removed his hand from the Kurze Kanone, just in case.

"Welcome to DexLabs, Mr. Uno," said the man. "I'm Sgt. Morton, Chief of Security."

"You know my name?" Nigel asked cautiously.

"I know you, sir."

"How?"

"It's a long story and not mine to tell, sir. You'll get all the details soon. I can say that I'm glad you're back."

"Back?" echoed Nigel. "I've never been here before, sir."

"Really?" challenged Morton softly. Nigel shook his head. Grown-ups. Suddenly Morton frowned and called over Nigel's head, "Hey! Gilliagn! Do not mess with that comm unit!"

Caught in the act, Hoagie snatched his hand away from the impressive array of buttons he'd been about to push, astonished that anyone here knew his name. With a grumbling sigh the sergeant turned as one of the elevators pinged. Nigel followed his gaze as the doors opened. He found himself gaping in shock as he recognized the young man that stepped out: Ben Tennyson, Wielder of the Omnitrix and one of the planet's foremost heroes. He felt his friends step closer and they all stared right along with him as Tennyson broke into a broad grin and waved, hurrying towards them.

"Izzat-?" Wally began.

"Hi, guys! Good to see you!" Tennyson smiled at all of them in genuine pleasure. "I wasn't sure it would work, but I'm really glad you all came."

"Hi!" waved Kuki, clueless but enthusiastic.

"What is going on here?" puzzled Abby, summing up all of their reactions in five words.

"Oh, sorry. I'm Ben. Ben Tennyson." He looked behind him and gestured. Another boy, smaller, younger, more reserved, stepped up to join them. Ben's presence was so boisterous that this little nerdy redhead in lab coat and glasses had been overlooked until he made his presence known. Instantly Morton moved to stand just behind him, protective and alert as a watchdog. Ben fell silent, deferring to his companion. Bright blue eyes studied them briefly, just as they studied him.

"Miss Sanban," he said in a slightly childish voice, his thick accent setting him apart from anything the five friends had ever encountered before. "Miss Lincoln. Mr. Gilligan. Mr. Beetles. Mr. Uno," he finished with a slight bow. "Welcome to DexLabs. Thank you for accepting my invitation."

"'Scuse me, but . . . who are you?" exclaimed Hoagie, unable to contain his curiosity.

"I'm Dexter," was the simple reply.

"You own this place," Abby said softly, hazarding a guess. "Right?"

"Correct, Miss. I'm the founder and Chief Executive Officer of DexLabs and DexCorp International. Welcome to my home."

"How do you know our names?" asked Hoagie.

"Though you don't recall as much at the moment, we've been friends for several years," assured Dexter, producing quizzical looks all around.

Nigel's confusion was complete and there was a hint of desperation in his voice as he asked, "Please, Mr. Dexter. Very little of what's happened today makes sense. We all received hand-delivered invitations to here. You all know us and I feel as if I should know you but . . . that's impossible. None of us have ever been here before. Hoagie found a note in his possession to Ben Tennyson from a Professor . . . Professor Utonium."

"Ha!" exclaimed Ben in triumph. "Told you he'd have it, Dex!"

"Benjamin, shush." He address the group of teens. "Professor Utonium is my father and . . ." He flashed a quick look at Wally. "A particular friend of Mr. Beetles."

"Him?" blurted Hoagie, scandalized and jealous even though he had no basis for the feelings. He pointed at the lanky blond boy beside him.

"Me?" Wally also pointed, horrified that he could be friends with anyone that had the title 'professor.'

"You're both big fans of _Spore,_" Dexter explained, then turned his focus back on Nigel. "Mr. Uno?"

Sensing the truth of the matter was within his grasp, Nigel studied Dexter in return. He considered, knowing his friends were waiting for him to take the initiative and ready to follow his lead. These people knew their names, knew _them._ The admiration and respect they held for Nigel and his friends was evident, as was their hope of being believed. It seemed hopelessly far-fetched, but after all the oddities of this day, somehow it made sense, too.

Pulling out his invitation, he read the unfamiliar title. "What is this . . . Code Name: Kids Next Door?"

"The answer, Nigel, is even more fantastic than the question," Dexter said. "The answer is . . . you. All of you. You are the Kids Next Door. You're heroes and soldiers. The world owes you an immense debt, as do I. You won't remember - yet - but the five of you entrusted me with something very precious and of immense value not just to you, but to me and Ben and the whole world. I'm grateful and proud that you relied on me for this, and I would very much like to return what's yours." As he spoke he extended his purple-gloved hand palm up to Nigel, inviting him to trust, to come closer, to believe.

They exchanged surprised glances, not sure of what to make of this but intensely intrigued as much by Dexter's speech as at Ben10's happy smile. Abby nodded her support and nudged Nigel. He hesitated the briefest bit, and then spoke for all his friends as he placed his hand in Dexter's and found the words they all wanted to ask.

"What exactly did we give you?"

Dexter smiled, closing his hand as he said, "The past eight years of your lives."

_- fin -_


End file.
